DERGAON, Jan 18 - There is resentment among a section of guardians and residents here following the action taken by the headmaster of Dergaon Don Bosco High School against four students.
According to a written complaint made by the guardians of the students, the headmaster has debarred the students from attending classes for one month before the annual examination as punishment for damaging �some minor school properties� like flower pots. Sources said that the students had gone on a rampage after one of them was pulled up for allegedly teasing a girl student.
The headmaster also reportedly served a transfer certificate on one of the students last year, to be effective from December 22, 2017, after passing the Class IX examination. Transfer certificates are also reportedly ready to be issued to the three other students.
But the headmaster�s decision is being seen as too harsh. As the names of the students have already been registered with the SEBA in Class IX, they must appear in the HSLC examination from the same school. If a student fails to do so, he will have to seek fresh admission in Class IX.
When contacted, the headmaster of Dergaon Don Bosco School, Fr NJ Cyriac, was reluctant to speak on the matter. He added that a public meeting would be convened in this regard.
Meanwhile, the Inspector of Schools, Golaghat District Circle, Hiren Gogoi told this correspondent that before taking such decisions, the adolescent behaviour of the students should be kept in mind. �I will visit the school soon to get a ground report,� Gogoi said.
Reacting to the development, the Golaghat District Coordinator of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Siksha Abhiyan (RMSA), Runa Saikia, stressed that no mental or physical punishment should be permitted under the Right to Education Act. Private schools have their own rules and regulations, but they should also be considerate towards students in such matters.
The principal of Dergaon Girls� HS School, Chida Pathak, urged the Don Bosco school authority to reconsider the matter so that the students are not harmed academically.
The spokesman of Assam High School Teachers� Association, Sashi Gohain, who is also the headmaster of Dusutimukh High School, also called for leniency in the matter.
Significantly, a section of guardians have questioned the formation of a school management committee without fulfilling the conditions laid down under the RTE Act, 2009. However, it is not known whether any ethics committee has been formed in the school to deal with such cases needing disciplinary action.
